Wendy Ledger

I loved to read! I read as much as I could. The library was my favorite place in the world.

2. What was your favorite story?

I loved Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh. I was fascinated by the idea of a young girl who carried a notebook around with her so that she could always write.

3. How do you get your ideas?

Oftentimes, my ideas come from a moment in my life. I wrote Joy Returns! because when I was young, I loved to play the piano. I also lived near a stable, and I had my favorite horses there. I wrote Kate and the Horses to remember the horses from my childhood. I wrote The Loudest Meow: A Talking Cat Fantasy because I had a calico cat who died suddenly, and I missed her, and so I wrote a book, imagining what she was doing in the afterlife.

4. What author do you really like right now?

This is a classic that I had never read before, but I really loved it. It’s The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame. I listened to the audiobook version. It was really fun to hear.

5. Do you have any new or lesser known authors you would suggest?

Have you read Jessica Townsend’s books? I really liked Nevermoor; The Trials of Morrigan Crow, and I want to read Wundersmith: The Calling of Morrigan Crow.

6. What advice do you have for a kid who wants to be an author?

Write! If anyone says that you are not a writer or you can’t be a writer, don’t listen. Keep going. Write!

7. As an author, do you hear from your readers? What do you like about that?

Yes, I love hearing from my readers. A writer can get lonely. You’re imagining all these things and creating stories on your own. It’s always nice to hear from others that they enjoyed what you dreamed up.

8. If you could portal into any book (yours or another person’s), what book would it be?

I would portal into my book, The Loudest Meow and spend some time with my calico cat and other cats that I’ve known.